The most substantial non-Chalcedonian tradition is known as
Oriental Orthodoxy. Within this tradition are a number of ancient Christian churches including the
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the
Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch (sometimes referred to as "Jacobite"), the
Armenian Apostolic Church, the
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the
Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the
Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. The official Christology of the Oriental Orthodox Church is
Miaphysitism, which affirms one composite nature of God the
Word Incarnate, fully divine and fully human, as articulated by the
Council of Ephesus and
Cyril of Alexandria. The Church also affirms
Trinitarian Triadology. The
Christology of the
Church of the East (i.e., "Nestorian" Christianity) may be called "non-Ephesine" for not accepting the
Council of Ephesus, but did finally gather to ratify the Council of Chalcedon at the Synod of Mar
Aba I in 544. Within the Patriarchates of
Alexandria and
Antioch, the rejection of the Chalcedonian definition led to a significant schism. The common people of Egypt and Syria largely opposed the council, while the Byzantine-Greek minority, which constituted the ruling class, generally accepted it. These two groups competed for control of the ancient sees of Alexandria and Antioch, which were important centers of influence in
Christendom at the time. Ultimately, neither faction achieved complete dominance over either church, resulting in the existence of two distinct, parallel patriarchates of Alexandria and Antioch for nearly 1,500 years, a situation that continues to the present day. The
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria represented the native Egyptian patriarchal faction that rejects Chalcedon, while the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria comprised those who accept the Council's decisions. In
Mesopotamia and the
Levant, the
Syriac Orthodox Church serves as the patriarchal faction for the local
Assyrian population, whereas the
Greek Orthodox Church was primarily concentrated in coastal regions with a Greek and Hellenized Syrian majority, continuing today as the
Rum. In India and to a lesser degree in Persia, the schism that occurred was between the
Syriac Orthodox Church and the
Assyrian Church of the East, which continues to exist in
Kerala as the two churches Syriac churches today. Moreover, there exists another Oriental Orthodox Church separated from Syriac Orthodox Church called the
Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. In the 18th century and onwards,
Nontrinitarian and
Unitarian Christians are necessarily non-Chalcedonian having their own separate traditions, different nontrinitarian theologies, and polities. The largest such groups are
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (
Latter Day Saint movement),
Jehovah's Witnesses and the
Iglesia ni Cristo. ==See also==